Response Expected in Oklahoma Gay Marriage Case

Attorneys for an Oklahoma lesbian couple suing to have their marriage recognized in the state are expected to make a court filing in the case.

Documents on behalf of the Tulsa couple, Mary Bishop and Sharon Baldwin, are due Monday at the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

The filing is a response to a brief by the Alliance Defending Freedom group, which has challenged gay marriage in Oklahoma. The ADF claimed in a recent filing that legalizing gay marriage would threaten traditional marriages.

U.S. District Judge Terence Kern determined in January that Oklahoma's voter-approved ban on gay marriage violated the U.S. Constitution's equal protection clause.

Bishop and Baldwin filed their lawsuit in 2004, after Oklahoma voters overwhelmingly passed the constitutional amendment that banned same-sex marriage in the state.

Copyright Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Comments

Jon W, 2014-03-17 23:07:16

Add your comment here:

Comments on Facebook

Related Stories

Lawyers who are appealing a federal judge’s ruling that overturned Oklahoma’s ban on same-sex marriage said in a court filing Monday that legalizing gay marriage would harm children, undermine society and make traditional marriages unstable.

The daughter of Oklahoma’s governor, who is part of a punk band and has posed for revealing photos at the state mansion, defended herself Friday after posting a photo of herself in a Native American headdress that critics called insensitive.